


The will needed

by epistretes



Category: Ant-Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Gen, Others with tiny cameos, inspired by Irondad but that is not the focus, minor science flirting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-19
Updated: 2018-10-19
Packaged: 2019-08-04 14:51:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,102
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16348772
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/epistretes/pseuds/epistretes
Summary: Post-Infinity War, they try to find a way back. Spoilers for 'Infinity War' and 'Ant-Man and the Wasp'.





	The will needed

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't written anything in over a year, but this got into my brain so I had to sit and write to get it out.

Everything hurt, but the look on Mr. Stark's face hurt more than being erased from existence. 

_If you die, I feel like that's on me_. That line had flitted through his memory as he realised he was about to die untold millions of miles from Earth in the arms of a man who had always tried to protect him. Even in Germany, Mr. Stark had wanted him on the periphery only and had benched him at the first sign of injury. He had wanted him away from the Vulture, had wanted him to let go of the space doughnut; but no, Peter had not heeded it. He had followed and now he would die in the arms of the man.

He understood that he would have died anyway on Earth, but Tony would not have known, not have _seen_.

Peter apologised to his mentor and faded.

Everything seemed warm, which was odd as Peter tended to cold ever since the spider's bite, but he shifted and tried to pull his blanket over himself tighter, only to realise he was not warm because he was not actually in bed…and he was wet. He opened his eyes on to a strange landscape of water and orange skies. He stood up, confused and then staggered a little as he remembered - he had died.

Was this the afterlife? If so, it was not what he had expected, at all. There was some sort of structure in the distance and Peter walked towards it, finding that he was no longer wet now he was not laying in the watery liquid. He wondered why no one else was here with him, he had seen the so-called 'guardian' guys he had caught with his webs fade before him, but where were they? He would have called for them, but he could not remember their names, so he made some up.

"Hey. Alien lady? Big tattooed guy? Footloose dude?" He called out, unsurprised when he got no reaction. Shrugging, he kept walking towards the structure - if anyone else was here then he reasoned they would probably also be making for the only landmark. It took a long time, but finally, he made it and found a small girl standing there alone. A small _green_ girl.

"Hello." She greeted him politely and he looked down at her and nodded.

"Hello to you, too, Miss. Do you know where we are?" He asked, giving her a small smile to reassure her as he did not know her and she might be frightened.

"We are in the soul stone. My father did it. He is gone now." She told him. "You must go, too."

"I don't understand…your father did what?"

"What he has always been trying to do, that is why we are here." The dots connected - this young, green girl was the daughter of Thanos. The daughter of the man who had killed him and it sent a shiver down his spine.

"You said he is gone now, did he-"

"He did not die," she cut him off and reached her hand to him and touched his knuckles gently. "He is resting."

"You said I must go?"

"You must change what he did."

"How do I do that?"

"I do not know, but I am to guide you through the gate."

"I don't even know your name - and where is everyone else?" He asked, dropping into a crouch so he was the same height as the child.

"Everyone else is in a different facet of the stone. You are the only one I am supposed to lead out of here, the only one with the physical body and the determined soul combined." She told him and held out her hand for him to take. He did so and stood up, the little girl leading him to the gateway. "You must go through, if you succeed, you will reverse what my father did and return me to my mother."

"Okay," he agreed, he would help bring everyone back, saving people was what Spiderman was all about, so Peter squared his shoulders and walked through, but nothing happened. Confused, he turned to face the girl on the original side.

"My name is Gamora," she told him in answer to his query and he realised he knew that name - the other Peter's Gamora had been killed by Thanos "and I am the sacrifice the stone needed." 

"What? No!" Peter yelled and lunged for her, but as he went back through the gate to get to her to stop her doing whatever she was going to do, she faded to dust in front of him and then six colours whipped past his eyes so quickly in turn that he was disorientated before his air was driven out of him in a whoosh as he hit a solid floor painfully.

He did not know what had happened to her, but he could only assume the worst when she had said the word 'sacrifice' and he hoped with every fibre of his being that she had not given herself up for his sake. He bit back any sound though, because the sense that had been growing in his mind recently warned him there was something else there and he may be in danger. He looked up from where he lay to see Thanos walking in the twilight of some unknown green, lush place, that was so very different to Titan.

He knew he could be anywhere in the universe or even maybe beyond, but he had to try. Getting upright, he crawled up on to the ceiling to get him out of the sight of the Mad Titan that had killed him so dispassionately and thought, looking around himself for something that could help. His eyes alighted on the crumpled Infinity Gauntlet and he saw the stones shimmering inside their housing brightly.

He knew he could not wield the glove, could not even hope to possess the sheer power to handle it like Thanos had, though his will to bring everyone back was indomitable and more than equal to Thanos' will to destroy them - plus it was far too large for his hands. A quick check to ensure Thanos was not looking, he was actually walking away with an easy gait as if unburdened now - then Peter dropped to the floor silently and reached for the stone, only for his hand to pass through the gauntlet entirely. His brow furrowed, was he a ghost? No, he had stuck to the walls and ceiling - he must be able to touch something.

He reached out again, his hand passing through all of the stones until he reached the red one. He remembered what Dr. Strange had told him after the plan had been decided and they waited for Thanos to appear. The red one was the Reality Stone, he was sure of it. So, could it react to him because it changed reality? He touched a hesitant finger to it and it pulsed red, another quick look outside in case the Mad Titan had noticed. He had not. A deep breath and he touched it again, asking it to make him real, to be able to touch all of the stones and then, he could; but only fleetingly as they stabbed pain deep in his gut when he did make contact.

A roar made Peter's head whip round and his heart jumped into his mouth in the same instant that his gut dropped to his toes as he saw Thanos charging towards him - he had been spotted.

" _Crapcrapcrapcrapcrap_ " Peter panicked, what was he to do? Even Mr. Stark at his most powerful, in his most refined suit had only been able to pull one drop of blood from Thanos while Peter himself had been trying to stop the others floating off into space. What was Peter to do all by himself?

A glint from the glove caught his eye and he knew it was his only option. He grabbed the blue stone he remembered the wizard telling him was the space stone and he asked it through the stabbing pain to take him to someone who could help him. A portal appeared behind him and he grabbed the gauntlet securely and threw himself backwards, Thanos missing him by a hair's breadth and then he was hurtling through the void, but Thanos did not follow.

Relief at being away from the purple genocidal maniac was palpable, but he still did not know where he was or what he was doing, he just clutched the gauntlet and kept his finger on the stone, body straining with the pain of it and he felt his healing property kick into overdrive and he realised that if he did not stop somewhere soon and let go, he would not withstand the power coursing through his spider-bite enhanced body.

His feet hit concrete and he opened his eyes, realising he was still, he quickly let go of the gauntlet. Where he was, he still had no idea, but it looked built up and designed like his own homeland - so he really hoped that was where he had wound up. Setting the gauntlet down carefully, he looked around, there was a lot of dust around and some sort of field lab set up and a van with something inside it. Odd, but he could work with this, it was something more in his sphere of knowledge than magic and aliens and soul stones that trapped little girls.

Something was flickering on the nearby screen, so he went to check it out, confused by the ants milling around on the roof. After a few minutes of looking it over and carefully examining it, he realised there was a two-way communicator. Deciphering the set up, he flicked the switch and called out

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

"Oh!" A response came back instantly. "Hank - you really had me going there, now get me out of here."

"I don't know who Hank is, I found this stuff abandoned…" Peter replied, confused.

"I get it, I deserve the prank, but seriously, get me out of here, it is getting weird and the tardigrades are gonna realise I'm here soon." The voice whined pleadingly.

"Tardigrades?" Peter was really confused now. "All right, give me a minute to figure out which switch to flip." Peter got to work, going into full science-mode as he broke down the tech in front of him. It was not Stark Tech, that was for sure, but it seemed human and logical - and the guy through the communicator had an American accent, which pointed to this being quite possibly Earth. Plus he had asked the stone to take him to someone that could help him and it brought him here.

Ten minutes of checking and double checking, with help from the voice that identified itself as Scott, Peter felt secure enough to press the button, when he did the van shook and lit up and then a beam of orange light dumped Ant-Man at his feet. The mask went up on the Iron Spider and he dropped into fighting stance.

"Hey - you're that guy from Germany." Ant-Man realised as he looked at his rescuer. "Oh right - sorry for slapping you halfway across Leipzig. Bygones?" 

"I guess." Peter relaxed, but kept the mask up even though Ant-Man removed his.

"Where are the Pyms anyway? Seems odd they'd do this, Janet didn't seem so much the pranking type. All right guys, you can come out now."

"Scott, there are some things I need to tell you…" Peter pulled his mask back as it seemed safe enough and he started to explain about Thanos and what had happened and he indicated the dust around them. "So I think maybe the Pym family aren’t playing a prank."

Scott paled and leaned against the van, dropping the canister he was holding and snatching at a phone. Peter's heart went out to him as a little girl's voice came over the voicemail recording, asking them to leave a message.

"She might not be near a phone..?" Peter suggested, but knowing it would not help.

"Cassie…" Scott pressed his thumb and forefinger to his eyes to try to stop himself breaking down and he took several deep breaths.

"Can I … can I borrow your phone?" Scott waved a hand vaguely at him and Peter snatched it up and dialled his home number, May snatching up the phone on the first ring.

"Peter?" She called into the phone, concern and hope in her voice.

"Aunt May! You're alive." He ignored the tears flowing down his face.

"Where are you?"

"I don't know. Something happened but I will try to get home. I have to find Mr. Stark first now I know you are okay." He told her and he could almost hear her purse her lips.

"Is this a Spiderman thing?"

"Yes."

"Okay, but check in with me. Got it?"

"Yes, May. I have to go."

"I mean it, check in every day, Peter." She warned him and he feared upsetting her more than he feared Thanos at this point.

"Scott, we need to find a way to bring them back, Gamora - the little girl inside the soul stone told me if I escaped, I could help do that. I stole the gauntlet from Thanos," he indicated the bejewelled contraption by the back left tyre of the van, the thing that had torn their loved ones from them "and I asked the space stone to bring me to someone that can help - it brought me here."

"To me?" Scott looked bewildered but it snapped him a little from his grief. "Why?"

"I don't know. It brought me after the snap, so…. So it must have been you. There was no one else for me to come to and you know the other Avengers - so it must have meant you."

"I only really know some of them," Scott mused "and not well enough to know where they are now. Oh! Hey! Maybe it wants Quantum Energy?"

"Quantum energy?"

"Yeah, that’s where I was, the Quantum Realm. It has healing powers, apparently, so I went in to collect some of the energy - its in this." he snatched up the canister and handed it to Peter. "I've got a masters in electrical engineering, not all this quantum physics stuff."

"Probably helps that I'm a massive physics nerd, then," Peter joked, walking back over to the machinery with the canister and setting to work.

Peter shivered and puffed out cold breath a few hours later and Scott sighed as the boy was still at it, muttering to himself and going though code.

"Look, man. This is cool and all but I'm getting really hungry and you're going to turn into a spider-sicle if you shiver much more."

"I could do with a break," Peter admitted, rubbing his eyes furiously and wishing Mr. Stark was with him to help him work out this Hank Pym's data. "Not every day I die, go into a rock, steal from an alien and warp through space. To think, I started today on a field trip to MoMA."

"You are so telling me all about that over dinner, I've never been to MoMa." Scott joked with him as they began to pack up, getting everything stowed away in miniature form before heading out to get something to eat, both having their masks on again - just in case. While they were ferreting around a seemingly abandoned grocery store for some food, the TV caught Peter's attention.

"As we mourn and try to make sense of the destruction that has happened, reports have come out of the formerly reclusive nation of Wakanda that the Avengers were fighting there, though it is unknown if they were fighting against or with Wakandan forces," the anchor reported and Peter's brow furrowed again as he thought.

"I would say with as Black Panther is their King and because I still haven’t forgiven you for electrocuting me," Scott grumbled at the woman on the television.

"Wait, what did you say?"

"Oh, that woman interviewed me, totally biased, by the way and-"

"No, about Wakanda."

"Black Panther, he was on your side in Germany, he is the King of Wakanda." Peter's face lit up.

"We need to get to Wakanda. Now." He told Scott, who shrugged. "And how are we supposed to do that? It is in Africa."

Four days later, with several greased palms and favours called in from Scott's extra-legal associates, they found themselves on a plane to the Côte d'Ivoire with a transfer to Wakanda by truck, Peter buried in any information about the Quantum Realm and the Pym Particles that he could dredge up from Scott's memory or from the data Hank had left when he disappeared.

He thought he had a pretty good handle on it, for a high schooler with no formal training in the science of what he was trying to learn, the Infinity Gauntlet also stowed away secretly and securely, but he knew it was important that he understood as much as humanly possible about what they were going to attempt.

A week had passed since Peter had met Scott when they found themselves alone at the Wakandan border. The guide had assured them that the reclusive country was here but they were trapped outside by the barrier. After a while of yelling and waving, they were approached by a group of women who looked like they could give even Spider-man and Ant-man a run for their money even with their full skill sets.

"What do you want?" One of them called out, spear at the ready but not pointed at them - yet.

"My name is Peter and I know the Avengers, I'm kind of one of them and I came here to try to help. I think I've maybe got a way we can help reverse what happened." The women all looked at each other, then parted as a smaller woman stepped forward.

"I am Shuri, current caretaker of Wakanda," she told them. "You know of a way?"

"I think so, I'm not sure, but I want to try." He told her.

"And who is that? Your bodyguard?" One of the women asked, nodding towards Scott.

"His gardener." Scott quipped in a (bad) West Country accent.

"Normally I'd love a movie reference but this is not the time." Peter muttered, looking annoyed, but Shuri chuckled. "Sorry about my friend, he is Ant-Man and he has spent too long around me this week."

"Come, Young Padawan, we will see what we can do." She touched her bracelet, which lit up and she ordered that the barrier to be opened for the men to walk through. Peter's eyes brightened for the first time that week with mirth rather than stress at her words.

"Ant-Man?" One of the woman raised an elegant eyebrow.

"It is cooler than it sounds," Scott assured her, but she did not seem convinced.

Peter launched into an explanation of the attack on New York and subsequent adventures in space. Shuri listened intently and once he caught up to the present and they neared the palace, she informed him of the battle of Wakanda and that her brother had been one of those lost.

"I met your brother once, we fought together, side-by-side, his suit was _awesome_."

"It was, but I made several improvements I will show you when we get him back." Shuri told him cheerfully, seemingly convinced they could pull this off and Peter thought maybe with her intelligence, she just might crack it with his input. When she led him into a room that housed what was left of the rogue Avengers, Dr. Banner, Thor, Rhodey and an alien, Peter waved an embarrassed hand, back inside the mask, which he had let down out of respect to the current ruler of the nation he was in.

"Hey everyone," he said, to looks of confusion.

"Spiderman?" Captain America got to his feet, holding out a hand, which Peter shook. "Scott."

"I think I have some explaining to do." Spiderman told them as Scott waved at the Captain. They all listened intently to the news from Spiderman (with interjections from Ant-Man), who had stunned them all into brief silence when he felt he trusted them enough to withdraw his mask and they saw just how young he was. Steve apologised profusely for dropping a walkway on him and Peter waved it off.

"I was okay, I knew what I was getting into. Sort of."

"I can’t believe I fought a kid." Steve groaned. "I can't believe Stark brought a _kid_ to a fight."

"Mr. Stark made sure I was safe enough, he upgraded my suit and he looks out for me, I was happy to help." Peter said, a little defensively of his mentor and the man he looked up to most. Steve nodded and they moved on, there were bigger fish to fry.

They had all felt their pain anew when he had confirmed how many had disappeared on Titan, making them incredulous when he mentioned being in the stone, but the racoon, Rocket he had to remind himself, had started at the mention of Gamora.

"Thanos killed Gamora?" he asked and Peter nodded, sadly.

"She might not be dead though? She was in the stone, I don't know how it works in there really. I mean, I was dead but I got out." He tried to reassure, but Rocket excused himself for a few minutes to compose himself, Thor having patted him on his small shoulder as he went.

"My plan was to use the gauntlet somehow - with the quantum energy infusing the stones to give healing power to it. If the stones can make this mess, they should be able to un-make it."

"The theory is sound, but who will be able to wield it?" Dr. Banner posited the question no one wanted to answer.

"The kid used it, maybe he could-" Natasha started but trailed off when Peter shook his head.

"I used two, separately and I thought it was going to rip me into tiny pieces it hurt so much." He told them. "My body can’t withstand all of them."

"More than one person can manage it," Rocket said from the door, having not made it all the way out. "That was how we did it with the power stone on Xandar. Quill is half-celestial, he held it and we all held him, sharing the power."

"Out of everyone here, The Hulk and I would have the best chance of survival," Thor mused. "And I promised Thanos I would kill him when he murdered my people and my brother."

"We just have to make sure the power stone doesn’t touch the ground or this whole planet will die anyway." Rocket warned.

"We should sleep on this," Steve stood and looked at everyone. "We are all too tired to attempt something like this now and we need to determine what is best to be done. With your permission, Highness."

"Granted, we will all meet here tomorrow. Dr. Banner, Peter - I would like you to accompany me to my lab. Scott too as he has been to the Quantum Realm." Shuri agreed and they all split up for the night, the smaller group heading to the lab with the gauntlet in the case Peter had secreted it in.

She told Peter and Scott about how she tried to help Vision but had been interrupted and showed them the scan she had taken.

"It looks polymorphic," Peter thought aloud as he looked on it and Shuri gave him an approving glance.

"You are quick, Spiderman," she complimented. Scott told them all he knew about the Quantum Realm and then headed for bed, tired as he was as the three science brains scanned, studied and discussed the stones and the gauntlet until the small hours when they headed for bed to be fresh for the morning.

When they met the next morning after sleep, a shower and some food to replenish themselves, they discussed the plan, which was for Thor to wear the gauntlet and have all of the enhanced then hold hands along a line to spread out the power between them. Rocket thought Thor could handle it by himself, as he had taken the full force of a star recently, but they decided to err on the side of caution. They assembled on the plains, the Jabari fighters alongside M'Baku and Okoye there with the Dora Milaje ready for whatever might come their way.

"There is something entering the atmosphere," Okoye warned and they patched audio through to Shuri as Thor activated the damaged gauntlet with a pained yell.

"This is the Milano - speaking to whomever is listening - don't shoot, my name is Tony Stark and I-"

"Stark!" Shuri called out in surprise. "Come to Wakanda, I will lower the barrier."

"Wakanda?" Tony sounded unsure but then agreed. "Sure, be there in two."

Hulk had finally agreed to come out now Bruce had learned to fight for himself a little as his human counterpart could not manage the power of the stones but he could fare batter - and he wanted some revenge on Thanos himself. Steve Rogers took Thor's other hand, Romanoff taking his and Rhodes on the other side, hands clapping together along with some pained grunts as the stones surged through them all at once.

All of the Avengers, including Peter and Ant-Man joined hands or touched their fingers to one who was already connected, the Dora Milaje following suit, M'Baku taking Okoye's hand and his warriors fell in line, until only Shuri was left and she lowered the barrier as the Milano sailed through, closing the barrier again and then joining her hand to Peter's in the line now her task was done.

The Milano landed and the door opened, spilling out the final two warriors from Titan and Peter could only see through a rainbow haze what was happening as dust coalesced around them all, people coming back into existence around them all as the group screamed in pain as the stones rebuilt the lost half of the universe. Seeing Tony again both twisted and lightened his heart. As the power surge died down, Thor yelled as he raised Stormbreaker

"Bring me Thanos!" the group uncoupled as the Mad Titan was brought before them again in a flash of the Bifröst. Stark yelled and fired his repulsors, knocking the purple alien back as Nebula screamed in fury, knives out and launching herself towards her father.

A roar of rage and Stormbreaker both split the air, spinning towards Thanos as both Nebula and Stark's attacks knocked him off-balance and this time, Thor had aimed for the head. Thanos slumped to the ground, the axe buried deep in his skull and Nebula stabbed him through the heart for good measure.

"I hate you." She told him to the stunned and silent masses. "I always hated you." She stood and walked away, until Rocket ran out towards her and stopped her, the two talking out of earshot.

"Did you do it?" Shuri asked Thor urgently and he nodded. "I also brought Asgard back and trapped my sister back in Hel, so I will return there soon. My people should be back where they belong."

"What about the people we lost on Titan?" Tony asked his god friend urgently. "Where are they?"

"They have returned to where they should be, friend Stark."

"Where's Gamora?" Came a yell from the ship as Quill stepped out of the Milano, followed by Drax, Mantis and Groot, having returned to their spaceship home when they came back rather than Titan where they had passed.

"It’s the pirate angel!" Drax called out, upon seeing Thor and Thor smiled, amused. "You survived."

"Gamora is where she should be. Where she considers home to be."

"She might not be," Nebula warned. "She was killed by Thanos physically before the snap."

"As was my brother, but we will have to see. If you would permit me aboard your ship again, Captain Rocket, we can search."

" _I'm_ the Captain." Quill moaned half-heartedly, looking annoyed.

"Before anyone goes anywhere, we are all having a party." Shuri announced, letting go of Peter's hand and wrapping her arms around her brother delightedly. "Right, Brother?"

"Right." He agreed, not really sure to what he was agreeing to exactly, but he was alive and his sister was happy, that was enough.

"Raincheck? I need to get to Queens." Tony Stark interjected. "There is someone I lost who I want to check came back."

"Um, Mr. Stark?" Peter stepped out from behind Shuri into his mentor's line of sight. 

"I'm right here - unless you want to see my Aunt May." Stark froze and Peter let his mask drop as he smiled at his friend in an awkward, embarrassed way. "I'm sorry I made you worry, I-"

His words were cut off when the Iron Man suit retreated back into the nanoparticle housing, Stark himself walking quickly to the boy and wrapping him in a relieved and very tight hug.

"Kid! You're okay." he murmured into his hair.

"I'm fine, Mr. Stark."

"Spiderman saved us all." Steve stepped up and looked on the boy almost as proudly as Tony did when he was pleased with his efforts.

" _My_ kid, I found him first." Tony retorted, not letting go of the boy in his arms, getting a chuckle and a smile from Cap in return. "But that sounds like quite a story."

"I thought we weren't at the hugging stage yet, Mr. Stark," Peter muttered so only he could hear.

"We are now, Kid. We are now." He assured him and Peter let himself be squeezed and he felt that the world was almost perfect. Mr. Stark was here, he was hugging him like Uncle Ben used to and he was alive. Now all he needed was to see May and all the pain would have been worth it.

"When you two are ready, I have a treat coming in for you," Shuri leaned in and told Peter, causing Mr. Stark to let go. Another jet came through the barrier on cue and as the door lowered, May Parker stepped out and Peter stared at Shuri.

"I sent for her last night. Go." Peter nodded excitedly and he ran to May, squeezing her as tight as he could without hurting her by accident with his spider-enhanced strength and as he looked back at Shuri and Mr. Stark smiling at him, the world really was perfect.


End file.
